1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for sampling and selecting audio files associated with a corresponding horn system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a system, and its corresponding method, for storing an audio file representing the sound output of a particular horn. Different audio files representing different horn types are stored in a memory and accessed by a system user who wishes to select a particular horn type without having to sample actual horns and while ensuring power conservation for the system.
2. Description of the Related Art
For a number of different product types, the typical method for marketing various models of consumer products is a sound demonstration in a retail store and involves taking a sample of each product and placing or presenting them side-by-side on a shelf or display case. For certain consumer electronics products, to demonstrate to the consumer how the sample actually sounds, this presentation detrimentally requires that the side-by-side samples are each hooked up to a regulated power source able to handle high-current draw and possibly to a power-control network to support the same. The result is that you have an expensive display composed of complicated and extensive cabling that may require junction boxes, networking, switching, and power control. Typically, such power controls, networking junction boxes, and systems to provide power to consumer products having differing voltages and current demands are exceedingly difficult to manage and correspondingly highly expensive and rarely if ever done. As an additional burden, often this type of comprehensive retail display requires differing insurance coverage for the retail owner. As a consequence, where there is a large product selection the retailer owner merely chooses one or two specimens for physical comparison and informally (non-professionally) provides a temporary power supply specific to the product, such as a 12 volt vehicle battery which similarly adopts high-current-related, acid-related (including environmental type dangers), and child-related dangers and associated legal liabilities. A similar detriment is the loss of valuable retail space taken by the battery, power supply; and display; typically 3-5 feet of continuous shelf space. As a result, there are many detriments associated with the previously known attempts at this technology and heretofore they have remained unresolved.
After-market horns (those that are not part of the host vehicle's original equipment) are produced for those consumers who want to add a specific sound, specific model, or specific type of horn to their car, truck, train, motorcycle, RV's, off-road vehicles, emergency vehicles, industrial equipment, or pleasure and industrial water-craft (e.g., boats). Generally, the best way for a consumer to determine if they want to buy a specific product model (horn, siren, back-up alarm) is to sample the actual model, hearing is believing. Unfortunately, retail vehicle parts and accessory suppliers such as Pep Boys™ or AutoZone™, who sell after-market parts such as mirrors, carburetors, and the like, set aside shelf space for samples or boxes of selected products for the store's consumers to evaluate based upon both the profitability of a product or product line (based on past sales) and upon the expense in displaying (higher profit products are displayed, lower profit/rare-order items are not displayed). Items are not displayed due to space and other limitations noted earlier. Ultimately, the retail display space dedicated to certain products is space that is reduced or not dedicated to other products and the competition for limited retail space (e.g., shelf space) is thus fierce among product competitors.
Optimizing the profit of every foot of retail floor space is essential to business survival. Optimizing retail display space is a concern for all retail store operators. The inventor has now originally recognized that reducing a product's footprint on the shelves while still providing the consumer with the ability to make an informed choice about product selection is of distinct competitive advantage.
In the case of after-market horns, the problems associated with footprint become acute. Horns need to be attached to a costly power supply that requires at least one of a costly regulated power supply that can handle sudden high current requirements, or the use of a wet cell battery that requires periodic maintenance and safe storage (potentially hazardous). Some horn suppliers create and install at their own cost elaborate custom switching, routing, or power reduction networks to handle the wiring; and, the wiring has a footprint of its own. Because of their diversity in tone, inherent audible level, power and use, there a great number of potential samples that can be put on display; each sample with its own per unit cost. The potential is expensive, or at best, limiting. There is an additional concern—noise. By their very nature, horns produce a loud audible signal, which in the confines of a retail store can be painful to hear, disruptive to store operations, hazardous to hearing, and may incur medical liability for the retail store in the case of high decibel truck or train horns. If multiple consumers are sampling multiple horns the result can be an extremely noisy, uncomfortable or confusing selection experience.
What is also not appreciated by the prior art is the cost associated with maintaining on a display individual pieces of equipment to be sampled. In the case of car, boat, or other forms of after-market horns, that are placed on display for a consumer to sample, there is the per unit cost of each individual horn to be sampled or selected from, the footprint of the equipment and cabling relative to the shelf or case housing the equipment, the volume of some horns in a relatively closed space, and the power consumption necessary to drive each sample.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved system that allows a user to select a horn based on listening to one or more audio files associated with a corresponding particular horn sound or horn model. There is also a need for a system that reduces costs, shelf footprint, and noise proliferation by providing a single device that allows a store customer to distinguish from among different horn types without having to sample actual horns or require assistance from store personnel—e.g., self-selection and self-instruction.